The Media In Fahrenheit 451, By Ray Bradbury

Montag's desire to acquire knowledge through books is dealt with by the rulers is that Montag’s boss, Beatty, says it was normal for a fireman to go through these phases of fascination of what books have to offer. Beatty tells Montag,” What traitors books can be! You think they’re backing you up, and then they turn on you. Others can use them, too, and there you are, lost in the middle of the moor, in a great welter of nouns and verbs and adjectives.” But, Beatty is missing the point on how valuable books can be. So Beatty tells Montag to read through all of the books Montag has stashed to see if the books contain anything worthwhile, then the next day turn them in to be burned.

With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world the blood pounded in his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatters and charcoal ruins of history.” (Bradbury 5). Montag lived in a society where books were burned instead of read,people never admired the little things in life, they always were focused on technology or things that don’t matter. No one took the time to be curious about life and what life is truly about. This quote from the book truly shows how this dystopia was. Instead of firefighters putting out fires like they would in today’s society, they would start

In the beginning of the book Ray Bradbury shows how Montog reacts to fire when he is ignorant. Montag did not think about what he was doing while he burned books because he had not began reading books himself. “Montag grinned the fierce grin of all men singed and driven back by flame. He knew that when he returned to the firehouse, he might wink at himself, a minstrel man, burnt corked, in the mirror.(4)” This quote shows Montag's outlook on fire before he began reading books himself. Montag was a complex character in Fahrenheit 451. His views constantly change as the story progresses. In the end of the book, Bradbury showed him and his reactions to fire where, after his ignorance had been lifted. He had realized that it could do more than cause destruction and take away pieces of art away, but that it could help bring people together. Bradbury shows this when montag finds people come together around fire rather than be pulled apart because of it: “It was not only the fire that was different. It was the silence that was concerned with all of the world.(146)” Montag looked at the fire at the end of the book and felt happy and at peace with the world. He did not feel anger or a resistance to the fire, but he was one with it and was no longer ignorant to how special books

On page 7 Bradbury writes “But I know something else you don’t. There’s dew on the grass in the morning.” He suddenly couldn’t remember if he had known this or not, and it made him quite irritable. “And if you look”---she nodded at the sky---”there’s a man in the moon” (Bradburry 7). He hadn’t looked for a long time.” Montag has been brainwashed by the government to think that TV and electronics are everything. This makes Montag start to understand what has been forgotten in life. He is starting to understand that he doesn’t want to do what the government is making him do. Later in the novel Montag gets stuck in predicament. Page 48 notes, “You weren’t there, you didn’t see,” he said. “There must be something in books, things we can’t imagine, to make a women stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don’t stay for nothing” (Bradburry 48). Montag is forced to kill the innocent women because she is in possession of the books. He is starting to have rebellious thoughts. When Montag finally starts understanding that the government is being unlawful, he acts on the situation. On page 115, Bradbury types, “You always said, don’t face a problem, burn it. Well, now I’ve done both. Goodbye, Captain. And he stumbled along the alley in the dark” (Bradburry 115). Beatty and the government have been forcing Montag to burn books, houses, even people to show power. But Montag realizes it

In the beginning Montag does not doubt the rules or expectations of being a firefighter. He believes that as a firefighter his job is to burn books because they are banned. Montag follows the rules and knows that he is not supposed to own or read any books. With the pure belief in the rules he enjoys going out every day and burning books. It doesn’t bother him to see the pages go to ashes. He thought, “It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed” (pg.7).

Montag’s motivation would be the urge to know the truth, he is very curious about things. For instance, Clarisse states, “ No one has time anymore for anyone else. You’re one of the few who put up with me. That’s why I think it’s so strange you’re a fireman. It just doesn’t seem right for you somehow.” (Bradbury 23,24). Montag is an inquisitive person who considers the well being of his society in a rightful manner. Beatty is motivated by thinking that his job, corrects the society and it is correct for the society. When Beatty burns books, it is the right thing to do for the society, according to him. Specifically, Beatty professes, “They [firemen] were given a new job, as custodians of our peace of mind, the focus of our understandable and rightful dread of being inferior: official censors, judges, and executors. That’s you, Montag, and that’s

Montag job is to burn books and by burning these knowledgeable books, he takes away knowledge from the society therefore ignoring all the knowledge that can be given to the society. Montag's first sense of knowledge came from McClellan when she asked, "Do you ever read the books that you burn?" When Montag got home he thought about the question. Montag ignored the fact of what could be in books, he was just doing his job until he realized that books have power. Montag finally realized when he burned a library with a woman inside protecting her books. For the first time Montag actually thought of what he was doing. Montag had a curiosity of why the woman would stay in a burning library to protect her books. This is what sparked Montag to quit his job as a firefighter.

Montag the main character is a fireman, for a living he sets others houses on fire even if they won’t leave because they have to burn all the books found in their society. Clarisse, a young girl with a pale complexion and curious violet eyes. Clarisse states in the story (Bradbury, Page 7) “ So many people are afraid of firemen, I mean but you’re just a man after all.” Montag has been a fireman for ten years, he states this in the book when Clarisse asked “Do you mind if i ask? How long have you worked at being a fireman?” Montag replies to Clarisse’s question by saying, “Since I was twenty, ten years ago.” (page 8)

Fahrenheit 451 is a novel by Ray Bradbury, which portrays Bradbury’s prediction of how one day humans will forget the joy of reading. This story takes place in a future dystopian city, where any actions related to books are illegal. The novel’s protagonist, Guy Montag, is a fireman, whose job involves burning books for a living. Throughout the story, the citizens live their mundane lives, which includes watching parlor walls (television) and having minimal connections with their friends or family. In part three of the novel, Bradbury writes about Guy Montag and how he is on-the-run from the officials of the city because of the many crimes he has committed such as reading books, hiding books, and the act of murder against his boss. Montag then joins a group of literary enthusiasts who are also hiding from the officials. The group is suddenly shocked to see a bombardment happening in the city. As the bombs fall, the passage shows Montag’s inner thoughts, emotions and his perspective on the explosion. This passage may seem like an average action scene at first glance, but through a deeper analysis, one can find Ray Bradbury’s use of contrasting words, variety of languages, and allusions, to suspense readers and foreshadow a new beginning to the meaningless lives of the citizens.

The people who were reading books were horrified by their actions, however never questioned by non-readers. Montag was a third generation fireman, he learned from his father and grandfather that burning books was necessary. He believed this until he met Clarisse, his 17 year old neighbor. Clarisse brought a new perspective to Montag’s thinking. She enlightened him by saying "So many people are afraid of firemen, I mean. But you're just a man, after all..." (Bradbury 3). He was not used to being spoken to this way. People feared and respected firemen but rarely asked questions. This way of thinking came about over time, people had become less interested in reading, the books were shortened and much of the content was lost. People thought the information in books was outdated and sometimes controversial. The government took advantage of this and hired firemen to start fires rather than putting them out for the happiness of the public. "They were given the new job, as custodians of our peace of mind, the focus of our understandable and rightful dread of being inferior” (www.enotes.com). The firemen are not responsible for saving or preventing death of the inhabitants, their only job was to burn the books, a task that they enjoyed. The firemen truly believed they were doing the right thing by saving the

“It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed. With the brass nozzle in his fists, with this great python spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world, the blood pounded in his head, and his hands were the hands of some amazing conductor playing all the symphonies of blazing and burning to bring down the tatter and charcoal ruins of history.”(page 3) This shows that Montag had embraced censorship with burning books because the civilization has kept him captive without him even knowing it. Clarisse is talking to Montag about what firemen really do in their job, and how she mentioned their initial jobs was to put out fires. Montag replied, “No. Houses have always been fireproof, take my word for it.”(page 8) This illustrates how being a fireman in this society manipulates the mind into a state of ignorance. Montag had adapted to his censored

This change is dangerous for Montag, because being a fireman got him closer to books. Books were illegal, possessing them, reading them, even remembering them made other people think they were crazy. The closer he got to books, the more curious he became of them. Two things pushed him over the edge, deaths, the death of Clarisse and a random old woman who burned in her home with her books. This strengthened his curiosity and he started to steal books from the houses he burned.

Montag in the book shows that there is a lot of censorship in the society he lives in. The society that he lives in burns books instead of saving burning houses. At the beginning of the novel Guy Montag enjoyed being a firemen and going to work everyday, but slowly Montag starts to realize that he does not like the job he is doing right now and that he feels like a robot going to work everyday, doing the same thing everyday just for his ungrateful wife. " It was a pleasure to burn. It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and charged with the brass nozzle in his fists, with the great python spitting its venomous kerosene upon the world.

One of Ray Bradbury’s most popular works is a book titled Fahrenheit 451.  The main characters are Guy Montag (fireman), Clarisse McClellan (antagonist), Mildred Montag (Guy Montag’s wife), and Beatty (Chief).  Fahrenheit 451 revolves around Guy Montag’s life and shows how he develops.  Montag has been a fireman for ten years and never questioned the system.  He meets Clarisse McClellan, a girl whom questions the laws of society, and instantly starts thinking about his purpose in the world.  As said on the book itself, “Internationally acclaimed with more than 5 million copies in print, Fahrenheit 451 is Ray Bradbury’s classic novel of censorship and defiance, as resonant today as it was when it first published more than 50 years ago.” (Bradbury,

To begin, rebelling against oppressive rule has allowed Montag to escape their rulers brainwashing and free their minds from the corruptive manipulation put in place by ruling powers. Author of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury goes on to explain, “If you don’t want a man unhappy politically, don’t give him two sides to a question to worry him; give him one.